The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced that the victims of deceptive “free” or “risk-free” trial marketing scheme will receive refunds.
According to the FTC, it is sending 14,370 refund checks totaling $488,629 to consumers who purchased golf and kitchen gadgets from a group of online marketers, AAFE Products Corp., and related defendants. Each consumer will receive an average refund of $34.
In March 2017, the Commission filed a complaint against the defendants for allegedly deceiving and luring consumers to buy “free” or “risk-free” cooking gadgets, golf equipment, and access to related online subscription services.
The defendants allegedly asked consumers to provide their credit card information to charge the shipping and handling for the “free product.” However, they did not disclose that they will also charge them a monthly subscription if they did not cancel.
Additionally, the FTC alleged that the defendants misrepresented their return, refund, and cancellation policies.
In September 2017, AAFE and related defendants agreed to settle the FTC charges. Under the settlement agreement, the defendants agreed to pay more than $2.5 million to the Commission, which will use the money for equitable relief including refunds to consumers.
